[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 109 (Tuesday, September 14, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9164-S9167]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
ANTI-JEWISH SENTIMENT IN EUROPE
Mr. SANTORUM. Today, as I come forward--and Senator Brownback will be
joining me in a few minutes--as we enter into Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish
new year, a time of reflection for the Jewish people, I thought it
would be appropriate to reflect upon the state of affairs with respect
to Jewry around the world and the frightening rise in anti-Semitism we
have seen in many parts of the world, and I argue, unfortunately, even
in this country.
Senator Brownback will talk about a different aspect than I, and
there will be some speakers tomorrow morning during morning business
who will cover various other aspects of this problem.
An area I have been particularly concerned about is the rise of anti-
Semitism in Europe. As we know, the roots of anti-Semitism in various
parts of Europe are very deep, and we have seen the horrific
consequences of that within the last century. It is important, as a
result, to keep a very close, watchful eye on any precursors to what
could be another tragic, horrific situation occurring on that
continent.
There is a rabbi, Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, who said--and this
quote, to me, is quite telling--``Let it not be said of us that we saw
the tiny flame but did not put it out until it became a raging fire.''
I think that is one of our duties and responsibilities as the leader of
the free world, in our diplomatic bodies around the world and through
diplomatic channels country to country, to use our good offices in
America to make sure we are watchful, and we do more than just watch
idly, to call attention to situations which are of concern to us as
freedom-loving people and as people who put first among our freedoms
the freedom of conscience.
The freedom of religion is the fundamental and first of our freedoms
because all freedoms flow from that. If you do not have the freedom to
believe what you want to believe, then freedom of speech is a
meaningless freedom, freedom of assembly is a meaningless freedom. So
this is the first of the freedoms, and it is one that we believe, as
Americans, very strongly.
We believe, as the President says, that liberty, that basic freedom
is the right of all people given by God. Yet we see, in Europe in
particular, a growing and rising tension in the world, in that
continent.
I submit for the Record recent incidents of anti-Semitism in Europe,
just in this year, the year 2004. I will go through and pick one
incident from each of the countries I will talk about. Unfortunately,
on this list--which is about 5 pages long--almost half of the incidents
occurred in France. I have had meetings with the French Ambassador on
this issue and expressed concerns about religious freedom and expressed
concerns, via correspondence and meetings, about anti-Semitism. Yet
this is a growing problem in this region of the world. But it is not
only in France.
This first example is of a situation in France. This is a situation
where we have the World War II memorial to Jewish soldiers in Lyon,
where you have swastikas painted on the memorial.
You have instance after instance--and I think there are, as I said,
5\1/2\ pages of this document that I will be submitting for the
Record--talking about anti-Semitic activity, whether it is graffiti or
turning over tombstones, destroying graves, whether it is vandalism of
synagogues, or whether it is assaults on Jewish children, particularly
in school and coming from religious schools. We are seeing it more and
more and more.
We need to understand this is not a problem that will go away if we
ignore it. This is a problem which we have to speak up on and bring
attention to.
In Belgium, four Jewish teenagers, all students from the same school
in an Antwerp suburb, were attacked by a group of 15 men. One of the
Jewish students was stabbed in the back and seriously injured. Again,
an attack, in this case, by ``youth of Arab origin.''
In the Czech Republic, some 80 tombstones were overturned in a Jewish
cemetery in Hranice in the east of the Czech Republic.
In Austria, a Holocaust memorial was desecrated, with the word
``lie'' spray painted over a historical plaque. This memorial near
Vienna is at the site of a former concentration camp.
In Germany, in Dusseldorf, vandals sprayed swastikas and SS symbols
on at least 40 gravestones at a Jewish cemetery.
[[Page S9165]]
In Hungary, a Jewish cemetery in northern Hungary was vandalized.
More than 90 gravestones were smashed only weeks after the cemetery had
been renovated by the local town council to mark the 60th anniversary
of the Holocaust.
In Moldova, vandals threw Molotov cocktails at the synagogue in
Tiraspol.
In Poland, in Krakow, police discovered the desecration of a 19th
century synagogue. Vandals had painted swastikas on a Star of David
hanging from gallows on the Tempel Synagogue.
In Romania, the wall of a Jewish cemetery in northwestern Romania was
smeared with swastikas as well as anti-Semitic and fascist slogans.
In Russia, there were several instances of vandalism and an explosion
in Debent that shattered several windows in a synagogue in the southern
region of Dagestan.
In Ukraine, more than 50 gravestones were vandalized in a Jewish
cemetery.
In Great Britain, the British rabbi--I will put up another quote from
him--said, ``Jews wait anxiously for the next news of a synagogue
vandalized, a cemetery desecrated, a Jewish school set on fire, Jews
attacked in the streets.''
In London, only a couple months ago, there was an arson attack on a
London area synagogue, destroying religious books, including some that
had been smuggled out by Jewish refugees fleeing the Nazis. A burning
rag was thrown into the South Tottenham United Synagogue.
In Birmingham, just last month, 60 Jewish gravestones were destroyed
in a cemetery.
We can go on and on and on.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the full text of this document
be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Recent Incidents of Anti-Semitism in Europe (2004)
Austria
June 1, 2004.--Villach.--A memorial honoring Holocaust
victims in southern Austria, consisting of 17 glass plates
engraved with the names of 108 local Holocaust victims, was
smashed. The memorial, which was created in 1999, was
previously damaged by vandals in March 2003.
January 18, 2004.--Hinterbruehl--A Holocaust memorial was
desecrated, with the word ``lie'' spray painted over a
historical plaque. The memorial near Vienna is at the site of
a former concentration camp.
Belgium
July 1, 2004.--Antwerp--In separate incidents, two Jewish
men were attacked in the Antwerp area. A Jewish cyclist in
Berchem had stones and bottles thrown at him by a group of 15
youths. He escaped injury. In the second attack, a young
Jewish man was found bleeding on the street. His attacker was
described as ``Eastern European origin.'' No arrests have
been made.
June 24, 2004.--Antwerp--Four Jewish teen-agers, all
students from the same school in an Antwerp suburb, were
attacked by a group of 15 men described by authorities as
``youth of Arab origin.'' One of the Jewish students, who was
stabbed in the back, was seriously injured with a punctured
lung. In response to the attack, ADL wrote to the Belgian
Ambassador urging an investigation.
Czech Republic
August 10, 2004.--Hranice--Some 80 tombstones were
overturned at the Jewish cemetery in Hranice in the east of
the Czech Republic.
France
August 26, 2004.--Paris--The director of the main public
library, the Bibliotheque Publique d'Information, announced
that anti-Semitic inscriptions were found stamped into a
dozen books about the Dreyfus case and legal issues. The
vandals stamped the edge of the books with the
words ``Against the Jewish Mafia and Jewish Racism'' with
the addresses of a Holocaust denial and Islamic propaganda
Web sites.
August 14, 2004.--Paris--Anti-Semitic graffiti, including a
sign saying ``death to Jews'' and a swastika, was found
scrawled on a wall on the grounds of Notre Dame Cathedral.
Police are investigating.
August 9, 2004.--Lyon--Some 60 gravestones were vandalized
with swastikas in a Jewish cemetery in Lyon in southeastern
France. On August 15, a 24-year-old man turned himself in to
Paris police and admitted to desecrating the graves in Lyon.
He did not appear to have links to far-right groups and told
investigators that he was inspired by a television
documentary about American racist groups. A state prosecutor
said that the man was inspired by a hatred of Arabs.
July 28, 2004.--Saverne--Thirty-two tombstones were
vandalized with swastikas, Stars of David and satanic ``666''
symbols in a Jewish cemetery in the Alsatian town of Saverne,
north of Strasbourg. The vandalism was discovered by a family
member visiting the cemetery.
June 11, 2004.--Rivesaltes--A Holocaust-era mural painted
by Jewish children in a transit camp who were being held
before being sent to Nazi death camps, was discovered
vandalized in southwestern France. A historian visiting the
site, where 4,500 Jews and Gypsies were held, found that the
mural had been chiseled off the wall. According to The
Independent, in 1942, a Swiss nurse at the camp asked the
children to paint a Swiss landscape on the infirmary wall.
The painting was discovered in 1999 and was to become the
central exhibition of a Holocaust museum at the Rivesaltes
transit camp. Half of the inmates of the transit camp,
including 400 children, were later killed in Auschwitz.
French government officials condemned the incident, and the
Interior Minister promised that the mural would be restored.
June 4, 2004.--Epinay-sur-Seine--A 17-year-old Jewish
student was stabbed by a man with a knife shouting ``Allahu
Aqbar'' (G-d is great in Arabic). The student was leaving a
Jewish school in the northern Parisian suburbs. The attacker
tried to hurt two other students with a screwdriver. The
student was in serious, but not critical condition. President
Jacques Chirac condemned the attack and the French Interior
Minister, Dominque de Villepin, visited the scene.
May 30, 2004.--Boulogne-Billancourt--A 17-year-old Jewish
youth was attacked outside his home in a Paris suburb by a
group of young men yelling anti-Semitic slogans. The youth is
the son of a local rabbi. President Jacques Chirac condemned
the attack.
May 7, 2004.--Villier-le-Bel--A small explosive device was
discovered outside a synagogue north of Paris. According to
media reports, the bomb was in a bag with the writing ``Boom
anti-Jews'' and a swastika. On May 14, an 18-year-old man was
found guilty of putting the fake bombs on the grounds of the
synagogue and was sentenced to two months in prison.
May 6/7, 2004.--Verdun--A memorial to Jewish soldiers who
died in the Battle of Verdun was vandalized. Nazi slogans and
symbols were scrawled on the memorial. The Battle of Verdun
was fought between French and German armies near the northern
French city in 1916.
May 4, 2004.--Paris--In the suburb of Cretiel, a rabbi and
his young son were attacked on their way home from Friday
night services.
April 29/30, 2004.--Colmar--A Jewish cemetery in the Alsace
region in eastern France was vandalized. At least 127
headstones were spray painted with swastikas and anti-Semitic
statements. The cemetery dates back to the 18th century. The
attack was condemned by numerous French officials, including
President Jacques Chirac.
April 4, 2004.--Valenciennes--A synagogue in northern
France was defaced with neo-Nazi slogans, including
swastikas, and ``One people, one empire, one leader, 59
years, sieg heil.'' The 59 is believed to be a reference to
the 59 years since the death of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.
March 23, 2004.--Toulon--A Jewish synagogue and community
center was set on fire. According to media reports, the
arsonist broke a window and threw a Molotov cocktail into the
building. There was minor damage and no injuries.
January 23, 2004.--Villiers-au-Bois--Two gravestones marked
with Stars of David were damaged in the World War I cemetery
of Villiers-au-Bois near the English Channel coast.
January 20, 2004.--Strasbourg--A parked minibus used to
transport children to a Jewish school in the eastern French
city of Strasbourg was burned. Police are investigating the
attack as an arson.
January 20, 2004.--Strasbourg--Police reported that a group
of assailants hurled stones at the door of a Strasbourg
synagogue.
January 20, 2004.--Paris--A Jewish teenager was injured in
an attack by Muslim youths at an ice-skating rink. The youths
shouted anti-Semitic insults at the 15-year old boy before
kicking him in the head and jaw with ice skates.
germany
August 15, 2004.--Berlin--A Jewish monument was smeared
with a swastika. Police are investigating.
July 22, 2004.--Hagen--A fifteen-year old boy, along with
two others, threatened visitors to a synagogue with a knife,
and made anti-Semitic remarks. The visitors were leaving the
synagogue at around 7 p.m. when they were confronted by the
boys.
June 25, 2004.--Dusseldorf--Vandals sprayed swastikas and
SS symbols on at least 40 gravestones at a Jewish cemerty.
hungary
July 21, 2004.--Debrecen--Vandals defaced a Holocaust
memorial with swastikas in the eastern Hungarian city of
Debrecen. Police are investigating.
July 1, 2004.--Gyongyos--A Jewish cemetery in northern
Hungary was vandalized. More than 90 gravestones were smashed
just weeks after the cemetery had been renovated by the local
town council to mark the 60th anniversary of the Holocaust.
moldova/transdniestrian republic
May 5, 2004.--Tiraspol--Vandals threw Molotov cocktails at
the synagogue in Tiraspol.
poland
June 13, 2004.--Krakow--Police discovered the desecration
of a 19th century synagogue. Vandals had painted swastikas
and a Star of David hanging from gallows on the Tempel
Synagogue.
[[Page S9166]]
Romania
August 20, 2004.--Cluj--The wall of a Jewish cemetery in
northwestern Romania was smeared with swastikas as well as
anti-Semitic and fascist slogans.
Russia
April 15/16, 2004.--Pyatigorsk--Fourteen tombstones were
vandalized in a Jewish cemetery. The cemetery had been
previously attacked in June 2003.
March 29, 2004.--St. Petersburg--The city's only kosher
restaurant had its windows broken by vandals.
February 15, 2004.--St. Petersburg--Vandals desecrated
about 50 graves in a Jewish cemetery, painting swastikas and
anti-Semitic graffiti on headstones. Police are
investigating.
January 27, 2004.--Derbent--An explosion shattered several
windows in a synagogue in Derbent in the the southern region
of Dagestan.
Ukraine
May 23, 2004.--Kiev--More than 50 gravestones were
vandalized in a Jewish cemetery. According to the chief rabbi
of Kiev, headstones were broken and heavy old stones were
thrown about. Ukrainian Interior Ministry spokesman Viktor
Korchinsky denied any acts of vandalism, saying the graves
were destroyed ``all by themselves, because they were too
old.''
March 23/24, 2004.--Odessa--Vandals broke several windows
of the Osipova Street Synagogue. No one was injured.
United Kingdom
August 21/22, 2004.--Birmingham--Sixty Jewish gravestones
were destroyed in the Witton cemetery. Community officials
reported that stickers with the logo of the neo-Nazi National
Front were found on some of the stones.
June 18, 2004.--London--A ``suspicious fire'' damaged the
synagogue and headquarters of Aish Ha Torah, a Jewish
educational group, in Hendon. Two Torah scrolls were torn and
desecrated in the attack and the synagogue and offices
suffered serious smoke damage.
June 17, 2004.--London--An arson attack on a London area
synagogue destroyed religious books, including some that had
been smuggled out by Jewish refugees fleeing the Nazis. A
burning rag was thrown into the south Tottenham United
Synagogue.
Mr. SANTORUM. But what we see here is a very troubling trend in an
area of the world which has been, unfortunately, a hotbed for this kind
of behavior which has led to horrific consequences. We have an
obligation, particularly in this region of the world, to point out to
the governments of those countries the importance of making sure that
religious liberty is respected, and religious liberty of all faiths,
but in particular any kind of rise or any kind of motion toward a
return to a horrific time in the world's history.
This is one of the reasons I wanted to get up and talk today. I think
it is important that we bring attention to this issue, as well as the
broader issue of anti-Semitism.
Later, we will hear people talk about the acceptance--it is almost
incredible to believe--the acceptance of anti-Semitic behavior at our
colleges and universities here in the United States of America, as well
as a whole host of problems.
Mr. President, I see my time is up. I know the Senator from Kansas is
here. I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kansas.
Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I thank my colleague from Pennsylvania
for addressing the topic of anti-Semitism and anti-Israelism expanding
in the world. I have comments to add to this issue as well.
This is a disheartening development that is taking place. We are
seeing it. It is being documented. I say to my colleagues, if they are
interested, I have ``The Rise of Anti-Israelism & Anti-Semitism,'' by
Dr. Gary Tobin, Dr. Alexander Karp, and others. It is a good 2, 2\1/2\
inches thick, documenting what is taking place in the world today. It
is full of pictures and leaflets that are being distributed. Some of
them are ghastly to look at. I do not want to show them on the Senate
floor because they are so dark and evil and diabolical. But I think it
is something for people to be able to see the documentation.
When I first heard about this developing, I said this can't really
take place now. We are 60 years out from Auschwitz. That is close
enough. People are still alive who experienced this. Surely this does
not happen in the world today. Yet it does. We need to identify it as
evil and dark and wrong and castigate it and tell people this is wrong
and stand up against it. And it is, unfortunately, well documented
about what is taking place.
I particularly thank my colleague Senator Voinovich for his tireless
work in promoting the Global Anti-Semitism Review Act of 2004 and
pushing to identify and get at the roots of the issue.
In his book titled ``Never Again? The Threat of the New Anti-
Semitism,'' National Director of the Anti-Defamation League, Abraham
Foxman, likens anti-Semitism to a disease. He says:
Like many diseases, it spreads from person to person. It
can be inherited--not genetically, of course, but through the
malign impact of a bigoted adult on his or her children and
grandchildren. It can lie dormant within an individual,
sowing symptoms only in times of stress. And at times when a
community is vulnerable, it can spread rapidly, causing an
outbreak that is equivalent to an epidemic.
We cannot tolerate further spread of this epidemic. Many of us here
associate anti-Semitism with the hatred of Jews that hit Europe in the
1930s and escalated to the genocidal measures of Adolph Hitler and the
Nazis. However, as President Bush stated in a recent speech:
. . . Anti-Semitism is not a problem of the past; the hatred
of Jews did not die in a Berlin bunker. . . . The
demonization of Israel, the most extreme anti-Zionist
rhetoric can be a flimsy cover for anti-Semitism, and
contribute to an atmosphere of fear in which synagogues are
desecrated, people are slandered, [and] folks are threatened.
. . .
This hatred of Israel and her people continues, endorsed and
propagated by many states and their leaders.
In a time when we are concerned about terrorism and security, some
might question the need to focus on a problem like anti-Semitism. The
issues of terrorism and anti-Semitism are inseparably married, wedded
by their intolerable hatred of Israel and Jews. They are joined
together by their disgust for defenders of peace and democracy. The
eerie and lasting relationship of state-sponsored terrorism and state-
sponsored anti-Semitism is destroying hope of peace for future
generations.
In the book I just referenced, the authors state:
Terrorism has clearly been chosen and relied upon as a
primary tactic by the world's most vehement anti-Israelists
and anti-Semites: despotic Arab dictatorships. Syria, Iran,
Saudi Arabia, and Palestine are all led by those who have
chosen to use fear and terror to weaken Israeli resolve.
In the State Department's Pattern of Global Terrorism report released
in 2001, it certifies that:
Iran's involvement in terrorist-related activities remained
focused on support
for groups opposed to Israel and peace between Israel and its
neighbors. . . . Supreme Leader Khamenei continued to refer
to Israel as a `cancerous tumor' that must be removed. . . .
The most recent report states that:
During 2003, Iran maintained a high-profile role in
encouraging anti-Israeli activity, both rhetorically and
operationally. . . . Iran provided Lebanese Hizballah and
Palestinian rejectionist groups--notably Hamas, the Palestine
Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of
Palestine-General Command--with funding, safe-haven,
training, and weapons.
That is from our own State Department.
In Foxman's book, he reiterates the trend of state-sponsored
terrorism taking a more religious approach:
So today, thanks to the propaganda of a number of
fundamentalist Islamic clerics, supported by Arab leaders in
many countries, the Arab-Israeli conflict has been
transformed from a nationalist struggle into a religious
one. When Palestinian suicide bombers go out on their
deadly missions, they wrap themselves not in the banner of
the Palestinian Authority but in the green and white flag
of Islam. When terrorists record videotapes to inspire
their followers and frighten their opponents, they don't
talk about demands for land or autonomy, they talk about
religious martyrdom and about their wish to kill Jews.
We are living in a critical period of history. The war for
civilization--and our very way of life--is being fought not only in
Baghdad and Kabul, but it is being fought in Jerusalem a well, and has
been for a long time. This battle pits democracy against
totalitarianism. It pits freedom against subjugation. It pits a culture
that values life against a culture willing to throw it away with
neither remorse nor regret.
While the global war on terror is our common cause now, peace and
reconciliation are our actual objectives. Through time immemorial, the
people of Israel have simply sought and taught of peace; of a time when
swords would be beaten into plowshares; and children would be taught of
war no
[[Page S9167]]
more. When the lion would lay down with the lamb and there would be no
more tears. Yet today we are beset with hostilities. Nations are
embracing terrorism. Hatreds exist without reason.
Peace and truth go together. We must speak of peace with all who
embrace peace and speak the truth about those who do not. Evil must be
identified for what it is and once exposed to the sunlight of the
truth, will waken, whither and fall. Terrorism and anti-Semitism are
evil and must be rejected by all civilized people and every nation.
Terrorism is practiced on the innocent and anti-Semitism on the
vulnerable, and they are tools of dark souls. Those that employ these
means must be confronted and renounced by all humanity.
Let us call on Syria and Iran, Sudan and North Korea to embrace the
nobility of their heritage and renounce terrorism and anti-Semitism.
Immunity from the wrath of hatred is impossible, but inoculation from
the spread of this disease to future generations is both possible and
necessary.
I yield the floor.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
____________________